The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Hi, everybody. I have a Columbia Grafonola with the louvers that are opened and closed by turning a metal knob on the side, as opposed to the kind with two wooden knobs on the louvers themselves. As long as I have owned it, the louvers stick when they are closed all the way, to the point where turning the side knob doesn't open them, and I have to poke them with a finger to get them open. If the louvers are not closed all the way -- even if they look like they are from a distance -- the side knob works fine. (They will close all the way using the side knob, but then I can't get them open again without poking them.)

Has anyone else had this issue? If so, what, short of sanding down and restaining the narrow edges of the louvers, can I do to fix the problem?

Thanks, all!

That's a beautiful machine! My guess is that you're the only one who can answer your question, since you have the phonograph to examine. You'll need to play detective here. With the louvers shut and stuck, try turning the control knob slightly. Is there ANY perceptible movement at all, even very slight? If so, the binding is probably not in the mechanism itself. Looking at the individual louvers, when they're in the stuck position, gently try each one by pushing on them, alternating your pushing between opening & closing actions. Do any of them appear to be stuck, while others move slightly to your touch? If so, there's your culprit. Can you look inside the cabinet, at the mechanism? Maybe at the extreme extension of the mechanism, there is a joint that begins to bind, needing only a drop of oil to be freed up.